CORDELIA -- Dozens of emaciated, young California Brown Pelicans are filling up a local bird rescue center, but they are not sick, just extremely hungry, the organization's manager said.

The many starving birds at the International Bird Rescue Center in Cordelia are eating about 600 pounds of fish per day and help is needed to feed the birds and keep up with the big fish bill, center manager Michelle Bellizzi said.

Young, starving California Brown Pelicans are being found and brought in from coastal and inland areas.

"Most of them appear to be just weak and starving -- that appears to be the primary problem," Bellizzi said.

International Bird Rescue, which also runs an aquatic bird rescue center in Los Angeles, is currently caring for 150 pelicans, with more arriving every day.

The Cordlia rescue center now has 86 young pelicans, part of the 98 taken in since June 15, Bellizzi said.

Some birds have already been released, and dozens more are expected over the rest of the summer.

Experts said the numerous young starving birds does not mean the California Brown Pelican bird breed is in danger.

In fact, the excess numbers indicate a good breeding season, Bellizzi said.

Last year, the same conditions resulted in a similar scenario with the Cordelia center caring for 300 pelicans, Bellizzi said.

Each year the pelicans breed in and around Mexico and then migrate in the summer up the coast to Oregon and Washington.

Though young, the fledgling birds must "sink or swim" so to speak, learning to survive and hunt for themselves quickly, experts said.

When they are not successful, the young birds grow desperate and act strangely -- begging people for food or foraging in unlikely spots.

"I liken it to sending a 10-year-old on a cross-country trip alone," Bellizzi said. "It takes them awhile to learn the ropes."

The majority now at the Cordelia center have been found in Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Francisco Bay, Bellizzi said.

But some are being found far off-course their usual coastal areas -- such as Orinda, Sonora and the Central Valley.

Besides starving, about 10 percent have other injuries, such as fractures, embedded fish hooks and lesions from entanglements with fishing lines.

Experts advise people who come across the birds to call a rescue center for a phone consultation prior to bringing them in.

Julie Skoglund, International Bird Rescue's Los Angeles Center manager, said young pelicans dying is a normal occurrence, but people get concerned when they see them perishing on public piers and beaches.

"These birds do need to learn to fish for themselves, but if they are severely debilitated we would much rather the public reports them so they can be evaluated at a rehabilitation center and, if possible, be treated for their problems and given a second chance at making it on their own," Skoglund said.

Meanwhile, the Cordelia rescue center is going through mountains of fish, and needs donations and volunteers to help with the feedings, Bellizzi said.

"It's time and labor intensive, but it's quite a satisfying thing. It's like seeing a lot of hungry kids eat," she added.

However, costs are mounting. "Our fish bill is astronomical and any cash donations we get go directly to buying fish," she said.

Donation programs available through the center allow people to adopt a pelican and be on hand when that bird is sent back to the wild.

After about three weeks of healthy eating, the birds have usually regained weight and enough body condition to be released.

The rescue center takes them to spots where a lot of adult pelicans are living, such as San Francisco Bay, Point Reyes, Half Moon Bay or Mossing landing, Bellizzi said. This gives them a better chance of survival.

Anyone who comes across a starving young pelican is advised to contact the California Council for Wildlife Rehabilitators organization at www.ccwr.org or by the International Bird Rescue Center in Cordelia at (707) 207-0380.

An orientation for volunteers interested in helping with the pelicans will be held 10 a.m. Saturday at the Fairfield center which can be found at 4369 Cordelia Road.